Passionate, romantic and all seen before.
High School Musical heartthrob Zac Efron stars in Scott Hicks’ The Lucky One, an adaption of Will Ferress’ novel of the same name. Efron stars as US Marine Sergeant Logan Thibault who, while out on tour discovers an abandoned photo of a blonde beauty (Taylor Schilling). Believing that the photo kept him safe when his friends died Logan returns home and decides he must find the girl to thank her. Once he finds her a somewhat complicated relationship begins to form between the two.
The film features some brilliant performances and some not so brilliant as well. The character of Logan (Efron) comes across as one dimensional from time to time however there are glimmers of a deeper personality. It’s Efron’s posture that really sells the character as a former marine. Stood up straight, arms firmly by his side, Efron maintains this composure throughout. It’s Taylor Schilling who gives an absolutely outstanding performance as love interest Beth Green. Displaying a large variety of emotions Taylor really is the star of The Lucky One, definitely an actress on the rise. The antagonist of the films is Beth’s angry, controlling ex husband Keith, portrayed by Jay R. Ferguson. When you get right down to it Keith is a good guy simply struggling to come to terms with rejection, not knowing how to handle it and Ferguson does a good job at portraying that. Riley Thomas Stewart plays Beth’s son Ben who gives a good performance. It seems Blythe Danner was born to play Taylor Schilling’s Nan as the two hold some resemblance to one another. Danner serves as the truth speaker and does a nice job at supporting her fellow co stars.
‘The Lucky One will have some audience members reaching for a tissue.’
From time to time the film can be both extremely passionate and sexual. Audience members will be feeling every touch and tasting every kiss. It’ll have them wishing that they were one of the lucky lovers as the attraction for one another is clear to see. The narrative appears to run off of fluke circumstances more than anything else. Meanwhile several scenes really bring some appreciated intensity to the film.
There really are some stunning locations at the heart of this romance flick. The freshness of the countryside really is the perfect place for an honest romance to blossom. When shot beautifully and framed tremendously it’s easy to appreciate such stunning landscapes.
So with so many good qualities how could The Lucky One be anything less than 5 stars? Problem: the audience have seen it all before. They’ve seen it in The Vow, they’ve seen it in The Notebook, and they’ve seen it in nearly every other romance film. It’s simply too predictable, everything is expected and therefore it won’t have the audience gripped. It’s this lack of originality that hurts The Lucky One from being a standout film.
With that being said however The Lucky One will have some audience members reaching for a tissue. While not necessarily compelling taking The Lucky One for what it is, it’s rather good. As stated it’s been seen before, many times over however who’s to say that this structure isn’t still enjoyable? It’s defiantly one to watch for the helpless romantics but it may have some partners asking why their significant other isn’t as perfect as the on screen couple.
Popcorn & Soda Rating: 3/5
Was The Lucky One an enjoyable watch for you?
